Both Sides | ✓

Chapter 5

Cleo's POV:

*  *  *

After school, I headed out of the building and into the parking lot in search of Via. I hadn't realized until I saw just how many students were around me that I had made a mistake by asking for a ride. Driving to Olivia's house alone for a tutoring session was one thing, but now we were starting to become friends.

Don't get me wrong; I wasn't really in the position to be turning away friends. Throughout the week, I had been eating lunch in the bathroom. Sometimes I preferred the quietness instead of the noisy cafeteria. Other days, I couldn't stand being alone in there. There was always an urge, as I sat on the sticky tile, to leave the bathroom and go into the cafeteria. Maybe take a seat with Via and her friends. But, I knew that people would talk. People always talked.

I watched as Daniel walked out of the doors behind me, scrolling through his phone. Olivia wasn't with him, so I approached Daniel as friendly as I could appear as he looked up from his screen.

"Hey Daniel," I said with a smile, and suddenly he was a nervous wreck.

"Hi- hello, uh, Cleo. W-What's up?" he rushed out, balling his left hand into a fist. I had to restrain a laugh.

"Via said she'd tutor me today. Have you seen her?"

"N-no... We had 6th period together b-but, yeah, I don't know." Daniel backed up as if afraid I would hit him. Suddenly the nervous wreck act wasn't as charming.

"Okay. Thanks anyway, " I grumbled out, departing from him and circling the school slowly.

Why did he assume I was mad at him? Honestly, I was so tired of people thinking I was this terrifying person. I didn't think I had done anything to make that seem true, but Daniel was afraid of me. I was a threat to him.

"Cleo!" Olivia yelled from behind me, running to catch up. I hadn't noticed how quickly I was walking. I stopped in my tracks and waited for her to run up to me. "God, you should sign up for track, " she joked.

"Oh, sorry," I said. She seemed a little distraught. I wondered if she thought I was terrifying too. "Where's your car?"

Olivia pointed to a shiny BMW in the parking lot. "It's actually my mom's but she had a big case this morning and couldn't take me," Olivia explained as we walked toward it.

"Oh, I figured you had your own car."

"Nope. Not yet, at least. But I'm hoping for my birthday I can get one."

"Oh, that's cool, " I muttered, approaching the passenger side door.

Olivia climbed into the driver's seat as I stepped inside. It had that new car smell. It wasn't cluttered with soda cans or cigarettes, which was a nice change. We pulled out of the school lot and onto the road.

"So, " Olivia said, stretching out the 'o'. "What's up with the spontaneous tutoring session?"

"I don't know, I was just having trouble focusing in class today. Thought maybe I could use some extra help."

Via tensed up at the mention of today's class which made me raise a brow.

"Yeah, I couldn't focus either, " she said

"Well, shit, how are you supposed to tutor me now?" I said, half-joking.

"Okay, let's just drive you home, " Via teased earning a well-deserved shove to the arm. "I'm joking, I'm joking!"

"Good, " I said.

"But if neither of us paid attention today then what's the point of tutoring? Maybe we should do something else instead, " Via said, her voice shaking a little with the last line. Her eyes darted from my face to the road again, trying to quickly read my expression.